Learn the rules concerning the final ν (n) of a word
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Intro |
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| Hi, everybody! Stefania here. Welcome to Ask a Teacher, where I’ll answer some of your most common Greek questions. |
| The Question |
| The question for this lesson is “When do you keep the final ν (N) of a word?” |
| Explanation |
| Many students get confused when they see some Greek words that end in ν (n) sometimes omitting that final ν (n). For example, δεν and δε (den/de, "not"), μην and μη (min/mi, "don't") την and τη (tin/ti, "the [feminine]"), and so on, so they ask me why this happens. I will explain the rule behind this in hopes that it will help all of you puzzled learners of Greek. |
| Let's go into more detail. First, let's see what does that final ν (n) rule say and which words get affected by it. |
| The rule says that the feminine words τη(ν) (tin, "the/her"), στη(ν) (stin, "to the"), αυτή(ν) (aftín, "her"), and the particles δε(ν) (den, "not"), and μη(ν) (min, "don't") keep that final ν (n) when the next word begins either with a vowel or the consonants κ (k), π (p), τ (t), ξ (x), ψ (ps), or the double consonant combinations μπ (b), ντ (d), γκ (g), τσ (ts) and τζ (j). In any other case, they lose it. Μη(ν) also loses its final ν (n) before a punctuation mark or a scholarly participle in some standard expressions. For example, Μη! (Mi! "Don't!") and χώρος μη καπνιζόντων (hóros mi kapznizóndon, "non-smoking area"). The masculine words τον (ton, "the/him"), στον (ston, "to/in/on/at the"), έναν (énan, "one"), αυτόν (aftón, "him"), and the adverb σαν (san, "as/like") always keep that final ν (n). This rule applies to written speech only. In oral speech, many Greeks assimilate the final ν (n) with the next word's initial letter so ν (n) is often not heard. Check out our assimilation videos in the Ultimate Greek Pronunciation Guide series on GreekPod101.com |
| Here are some sample sentences. |
| Αυτόν δεν τον ξέρω. (Aftón den ton xéro.) |
| "I don't know him." |
| Χρησιμοποιώ τη σκούπα. (Hrisimopió ti skúpa.) |
| "I use the broom." |
| Following up, let's see why we keep the final ν (n) in some words. |
| The reason is simple; If we were to remove the final ν (n) from the masculine words τον (ton, "the"), στον (ston, "to/in/on/at the"), αυτόν (aftón, "him"), and έναν (énan, "one"), they could be confused for neuter words, especially when they define a noun whose gender we are not sure of. So when we would see somewhere written "...το νέο..." (...to néo...) without knowing the context, we wouldn't be sure if it's a neuter adjective meaning "the new" or a masculine noun in the accusative case meaning το(ν) νέο (ton néo, "the young man"). |
| Here are some more sample sentences. |
| Ξέρεις τον νέο υπάλληλο; (Xéris ton néo ipálilo?) |
| "Do you know the new employee?" |
| Διαλέγω αυτόν και εκείνον. (Dialégo aftón ke ekínon.) |
| "I choose him and him (the other one)." |
| Finally, there is one case where the current rule creates some uncertainty. |
| By allowing us to write δε (de, "not"), there might be cases where this negative particle might be mistaken for the conjunction δε (de, roughly meaning "however"). For example, Ο δάσκαλος μιλούσε· οι μαθητές δε γελούσαν (O dáskalos milúse; i mathités de yelúsan. "The teacher was talking; The students, however, were laughing"). If the conjunction δε (de) would be mistaken for the verb's negation when reading, then the meaning would be different. "The teacher was talking; the students weren't laughing." The problem is in written speech only, because in oral speech, the intonation helps make the distinction. This issue has created a lot of controversy among teachers, editors, and linguists leaving students and other people confused. So some Greeks write δεν (den, "not") always while others follow the existing rule. I personally choose to always write δεν (den) to avoid any confusion. |
| Here are some sample sentences. |
| Πρώτα γίνεται η συνέντευξη, κατόπιν δε γίνεται εξέταση. (Próta yínete i sinéndefxi, katópin de yínete exétasi.) |
| "First, there's the interview, later on, however, there's an examination." |
| Δεν ξέρω τι να κάνω. (Den xéro ti na káno.) |
| "I don't know what to do." |
| Tip - If you have trouble remembering the rule's consonant letters, here's a cheat phrase that will help you remember them. ΤΣάι στην ΚαΤάΨυΞη κι ένα ΜΠουλΝΤόΓΚ στο ΤΖιΠ (TSái stin KaTáPSiXi ki éna BulDóG sto JiP.) Meaning "Tea in the freezer and a bulldog in the jeep." I know it sounds ridiculous, but I hope this cheat phrase will help! |
Outro |
| How was the lesson? Pretty interesting, right? |
| Do you have any more questions? If you can come up with any other cheat ideas, let me know in the comments! |
| Γεια χαρά! (Ya hará!) |
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